The History of Pirelli Industries in the 1940s: A Corporate Heritage Now Also Accessible Online
From today, a new series of documents from the Pirelli Historical Archive is available online. The publication of the Documents on the History of Pirelli Industries now extends up to the 1940s, forming a documentary collection that illustrates the story of the company from its foundation through to the 1980s. Alongside the usual price lists, product catalogues and patents, the approximately 580 documents that are now available also include records from the challenging period of the Second World War, with the German occupation of northern Italy and the subsequent reconstruction efforts after the Liberation. Photographs of the Milan factories in Via Ponte Seveso and Milano Bicocca were taken by Emilio Calcagni, Mario Crimella, and Giulio Galimberti, both before and after the air raids of August 1943. In them we see the Pirelli facilities and the destruction caused by the bombing. This devastation ultimately led to the decision, after the war, to concentrate production in Bicocca and to build the Pirelli Tower next to the station, on the rubble of the factory.
Several documents retrace the months following the Nazi-Fascist occupation after 8 September 1943. File number 2194 contains documents dating from the period of German occupation in Italy regarding the Resistance of Pirelli against the occupying German troops. The documents include letters and reports detailing the resistance work undertaken by the company and its workers against Nazi attempts to use the plant for their war efforts and to transfer part of the workforce to factories in Germany. They also illustrate the company’s contribution to the Liberation struggle, not only through economic support but also through active participation in the protests and strikes of 1943-4, which unfortunately led to many workers being arrested and deported to Nazi concentration camps.
Cesare Merzagora, the central director from 1938, director of the National Liberation Committee for Northern Italy (CLNAI) from 1944, and commissioner of the company from May 1945 until the return to office of Piero and Alberto Pirelli in May 1946, told the Assembly on 11 December 1945 that Pirelli was “one of the most important centres of the resistance movement”, as we see in the printed dossier no. 2214.
The collection also illustrates the challenges facing the resumption of production after the war, the shortage of raw materials, and the assistance received from the American and British Allies. As we see in press review no. 2225 of 25 January 1946, the first tyres to be produced, after more than a year, were made possible by deliveries of synthetic rubber from America and natural rubber from England.
Having overcome the challenges of the war period, Pirelli was able to celebrate a significant milestone: its 75th anniversary. Various events were put on to mark the occasion, including the opening of the seaside holiday camp in Pietra Ligure, sporting events, the creation of commemorative postcards, stamps, and key rings, for which the sketches have been preserved. The company was now poised for a fresh start in an atmosphere of renewed optimism. 1948 saw the birth of Pirelli magazine and of the Cultural Centre, and a competition was launched for new advertising campaigns for the Stella Bianca tyre and foam rubber. A new era was dawning.
From today, a new series of documents from the Pirelli Historical Archive is available online. The publication of the Documents on the History of Pirelli Industries now extends up to the 1940s, forming a documentary collection that illustrates the story of the company from its foundation through to the 1980s. Alongside the usual price lists, product catalogues and patents, the approximately 580 documents that are now available also include records from the challenging period of the Second World War, with the German occupation of northern Italy and the subsequent reconstruction efforts after the Liberation. Photographs of the Milan factories in Via Ponte Seveso and Milano Bicocca were taken by Emilio Calcagni, Mario Crimella, and Giulio Galimberti, both before and after the air raids of August 1943. In them we see the Pirelli facilities and the destruction caused by the bombing. This devastation ultimately led to the decision, after the war, to concentrate production in Bicocca and to build the Pirelli Tower next to the station, on the rubble of the factory.
Several documents retrace the months following the Nazi-Fascist occupation after 8 September 1943. File number 2194 contains documents dating from the period of German occupation in Italy regarding the Resistance of Pirelli against the occupying German troops. The documents include letters and reports detailing the resistance work undertaken by the company and its workers against Nazi attempts to use the plant for their war efforts and to transfer part of the workforce to factories in Germany. They also illustrate the company’s contribution to the Liberation struggle, not only through economic support but also through active participation in the protests and strikes of 1943-4, which unfortunately led to many workers being arrested and deported to Nazi concentration camps.
Cesare Merzagora, the central director from 1938, director of the National Liberation Committee for Northern Italy (CLNAI) from 1944, and commissioner of the company from May 1945 until the return to office of Piero and Alberto Pirelli in May 1946, told the Assembly on 11 December 1945 that Pirelli was “one of the most important centres of the resistance movement”, as we see in the printed dossier no. 2214.
The collection also illustrates the challenges facing the resumption of production after the war, the shortage of raw materials, and the assistance received from the American and British Allies. As we see in press review no. 2225 of 25 January 1946, the first tyres to be produced, after more than a year, were made possible by deliveries of synthetic rubber from America and natural rubber from England.
Having overcome the challenges of the war period, Pirelli was able to celebrate a significant milestone: its 75th anniversary. Various events were put on to mark the occasion, including the opening of the seaside holiday camp in Pietra Ligure, sporting events, the creation of commemorative postcards, stamps, and key rings, for which the sketches have been preserved. The company was now poised for a fresh start in an atmosphere of renewed optimism. 1948 saw the birth of Pirelli magazine and of the Cultural Centre, and a competition was launched for new advertising campaigns for the Stella Bianca tyre and foam rubber. A new era was dawning.
